Quote:
Originally Posted by BJClark  Amazing Grace; Quote: |
Let me give you an example. Currently our church is supporting to people in Niger. One is a doctor, one is an agrinomist. We found out that our support was only going for humanitarian efforts on their part. We insisted that unless there was evidence of the Gospel being taught in the area, we would no longer support their endeavors as a church. Individually people can send money, but not as a whole body. I would much rather give unbelievers the bread of Heaven than earthly manna.
| I like the teach them to fish so they can have many meals, and not just keep giving to them where they become dependent.
However, giving them a few meals while they are learning to fish is the time to be sharing not just the gospel but Biblical truths such as:
He who does not work does not eat.
So a question, is the doctor your church has been supporting, been teaching others the trade of medicine so they can learn to provide medical assistance for themselves?
And is the agronomist teaching them to plant their own food?
Jesus fed with both spiritual food and earthly manna, we also know that churches supported Paul, what he did with what was sent to him we don't know, scripture is silent...was it only for himself or did he share it with others? We don't even know what was sent, all we know is they sent what he needed to meet the needs..
If the need of the doctor is to provide medical care for those in the community while sharing the Gospel, why not continue to support him?
If the need is to provide hoes, shovels or seed so they can learn to feed themselves as the Bible teaches then why not send it? You never know, the way things are going with the price of food and such they may be the ones who provide others with earthly manna in the future. |
The problem I had was they were not proclaiming the Gospel at all. Nor anyone else from our denomination in that area. It was strictly a humanism red cross type project. Please do not hear what i am not saying, I am not saying we let them starve while hearing the Gospel, but the belly is not the main aim of mission as far as I can see from the writ. Helping an unbeliever with temporal things was never the focus of the apostolic witness. Acts 2:
42They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44
All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
This is more than the perverbial arguement from silence. Paul is very explicit in what he did when he went to the area of unbelievers. He preached Christ and Him crucified, set up a local assembly, appointed elders and moved on. The support he received was mainly for the household of faith. (Gal 6:10), if any humanitarian help was given, it would never have been in deed alone. For how are we to tell the difference between the believer and unbeliever? What makes one differ? It has to be the Gospel.